The National tribune., 1887-09-01
FIGHTING THEM OVER
What Our Veterans Have 10 Say About
Their Old Campaigns
IN THE WILDERNESS.
tine Story Of an Officer Who "Nas Dead and Is
Alive Again."


The Story Of an Officer Who "MaS Dead and Is
Alive Again."
EDrroR NATIONAL TRIBUNE; The Wilder
ness will never cease 20 give bloody and in
teresting page 10 the history of the rebellion.
Charlottesville IN the early days of May, 1863,
with Hooker in command and the still more
bloody struggle of the same gallant army under
Grant in the early days Of the same month in
1864, signnlize the Wilderness of the Rapidan
as the bloody ground of the great rebellion.
Doubtless volumes of incidents and interesting
predictions occurring in this gloomy region
of the war remain to be told.
Allow me 90 give an account Of q singular
circumstance which occurred in the struggle of
May ls64 of which Lieut.. David VanN alzah,
then OF the 18th u. S. Inf, was the innocent
subject. He was in that bloody battle, and it
was his fortune 20 be killed. as was believed
and reported by the men and officers of his
company aud regiment The sad fact was COM
munIcated 10 his parents and friends who lived
la the Juninta Valley, in the interior Of the
State of Pennsylvania, and was AS confidently
believed by them, who accordingly assumed
the mourriul garb OF grief for the beloved lost
son and brother.
My regiment at this time was on veteran fur
Tough aud early IN the month Of May was on
its way TO the front Ii rejoined the army on
the line Of Spottsylvania, where the battle be-
gun In the Wilderness had been shifted, and
was still being waged on both sides with all
the zeal and determination that two such great
headers Grant aud Lee could impart TO their
respective armies soon heard of the death of
my faithful and brave young townsman, and
made earnest Enquiry IN reference 10 time,
place aud circumstances, that 1 might be en-
abled Co communicate to the family at his home
something that, although sad and mouniul,
might be interesting 10 them.
La the FIRST account ] received of the Lieu
tenants death got the impression of the pos
sibllity CT thore being some mistake about il.
This inferred from the lack of specific facts
and circumstances, and the knowledge had
from exp, ience in Wilderness fighting. and
the further fact that under such circumstances
not a few cases had already occurred where
men and officers were supposed 10 have been
killed, out they afterward returned. In the ex-
citement of the battle they had fallen into the
hands of the enemy, sometimes wounded or
disabled, and were subsequently paroled, and
surprised their mourning friends by presenting
themselves alive perhaps many months after
their supposed death upon the battlefield.
at once determined TO make inquiry into
the facts and circumstances 80 far as possible,
and embraced every opportunity. All that /
could learn in this way only went to make his
having been killed the more certain. His
regiment being in different division from my
OWL did not have the opportunity to make
inquiry from the officers and men of his own
company aud regiment, who had been i'm the
battle with him, and would likely be enabled
90 give more satisfaction than others Of whom
i could inquire. i was not permitted 10
leave my own regiment while fighting was
almost constant and every officer and soldier
was required TO be at his post of duty. / en-
gagged the Chaplain of my regiment-Rev. W.
Il. Campbell-who had time and permission to
ride around and about everywhere in the
army, 10 visit the Regular Division, lad out the
12th u. 3. Inf, and make the necessary in
quiries. He took quite an interest rs he pro-
crossed i'm search OF the facts and circumstances
OF Lieut. Van Nalzah's death, and reported to
me.
He had interviews with a number of the
officers and the Surgeon of the regiment, and
the urances, without exception, tended to cor
roborate the previous report Of the Lieutenant's
death. He had been seen 10 fall from a fatal
shot, and had been seen lying dead upon the
battlefield. Others, although not seeing ali
this, saw sufficient TO satisfy them that he was
certainly killed, and no one who could be found
believed anything TO the contrary.
At last the Chaplain came across an officer of
that regiment who had been intimately ac-
quainted with Lieut.. Van Nalzah for many
years, Tor they were born and brought up i'm
the same community, and received in the early
part Of the war commissions in the same regi-
nient, and therefore there could be no mistake
about the identification. This officer made the
former sad fact OF death dOubly certain by
asseyerating that there was no doubt Of it, as
he himself had seen him dead upon the battle
field, had recognized his body, aud further than
that bad seen him buried"
This unqualified testimony in the case was q
clincher, aud stopped any further inquiry on
the part of myself or that Of the Chaplain
Who would say alter all this that the
fact Of the Licutcnant's death was not fully
and cOnclusivey established Z Everybody
Thought and believed that knew most about
lt aud that was ia the very best position to
know, and there was apparently no room left
for doubt
The war continued 10 rage in an It's furv
and intensity. From Spotlsylvania TO North
Anna, 10 Bethesda church aud Cold Harbor.
aud from thence To Petersburg. thousands
had persisted I'm the pr0tracted conflict and
mourning and sadness were in almost every
household North and South.
ln the month OF August az my quarters Ia
Fort Davis In front of Petersburg, three
months after Lieut. Van Nalzah had fallen i'm
The gloomy regions of the Wilderness two or
three young officers OF his regiment came from
distant part Of the line 20 announce 10 me
the very welcome intelligence of the fact that
lac was alive and not dead that letters had
recently been received from him dated AT
Macon. Ga, informing them that he was a
prisoner IN the hands of the enemy, IN good
health, aud without wound or scratch He
had previously received a wound in the battle
OF Getty sbnrg, from which he had entirely re-
covered. AT this writing he is a Major In the
United States Army, doing service on our
Northwestern frontier. Inthe war he preferred
The front, with its hard service aud dangers TO
any position Of ease and safety in the rear.-T.
u. McCof Colonel, 10Th Pa, Lcwistown, Pa.